CSRC Publishing: Open Journal Systems (Center for Sustainability Research and Consultancy)
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1354 research outputs found
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Fueling Business Success: Intellectual Capital and its Pathways to Performance
No full textPurpose: This study aims to examine the association between the dimensions of intellectual capital and firm performance in the manufacturing sector of Pakistan, highlighting the importance of intellectual capital in times of economic uncertainty and rapid technological change
Design/Methodology/Approach: Survey data were gathered from 319 supply chain professionals and analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). Reliability and validity of the measurement model was tested for the study and the structural model rooted on the DCV was examined. Furthermore, secondary financial performance data (ROA, ROE, ROI) were analyzed using regression analysis from the annual reports and Pakistan Stock Exchange.
Findings: This study provides evidence of a positive and significant relationship between the dimensions of intellectual capital and financial and non-financial performance. The predictive ability of the model was robust for ROA and ROE whereas the one for ROI was less so. The non-financial performance has significant explanatory power at the 5% level, which emphasizes the impact of IC on Supply chain performance.
Implications/Originality/Value: The findings highlight the strategic significance for firms in harnessing and utilizing intellectual capital to improve supply chain and overall firm performance, especially in turbulent and hyper‐competitive environments
Impact of Unethical Pro-Leader Behavior on Careerism Through Co-worker Undermining
No full textPurpose: Drawing upon sense-making theory, this study aims to examine the impact of unethical pro-leader behavior (UPLB) on careerism. Specifically, it explores the mediating role of co-worker undermining in this relationship.
Design/Methodology: Data were collected from 483 employees working in service sector organizations using a three-wave, time-lagged survey design. The study utilized statistical analyses to test the hypothesized relationships among UPLB, co-worker undermining, and careerism.
Findings: The results revealed that unethical pro-leader behavior is positively associated with careerism, and this relationship is mediated by co-worker undermining. The findings suggest that employees may engage in or experience interpersonal undermining as a strategy to advance their careers.
Implications: This study contributes to the literature on unethical leadership by highlighting how UPLB can indirectly foster careerism through damaging workplace dynamics. The findings have practical implications for managers and organizations aiming to cultivate ethical leadership and reduce counterproductive work behaviors.
Originality: This research offers empirical evidence on the interpersonal mechanisms linking unethical pro-leader behavior to career-oriented attitudes. It expands the understanding of how employees navigate their careers within ethically compromised environments and provides a novel perspective on the role of co-worker dynamics
Effect of Employee Recognition on the Performance of Health Care Employees among Selected County Governments in Western Kenya
No full textPurpose: To assess the effect of employee recognition on the performance of health care employees among selected county governments in Western Kenya.
Design/Methodology/Approach: The study adopted a descriptive cross sectional survey research design. The study targeted 600 health sector staff of selected County Governments. Samples of 240 staff were used. Primary data were obtained by use questionnaires. Results were discussed and presented in tables. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics such as frequencies, percentages, mean, standard deviation and inferential statistics included Pearson correlation and regression analysis.
Findings: The results of this research were that employee recognition has a positive statistical significant effect on performance of health care employees of County Governments in Western Region (p-value of 0.000 and t tests exceeding 1.96). The study rejected all the null hypothesis set.
Implications/Originality/Value: The study recommends that County government’s management in Western Region should always treat employees with recognition for tasks well done through praising, gifts and promotions
Effect of Inflation Risk on the Public Debt in Kenya
No full textPurpose: To examine the effect of inflation risk on the public debt in Kenya
Design/Methodology/Approach: The study employed quantitative approaches to empirical study the relation to independent variables and the dependent variable. A longitudinal and correlational design was used since it employed time series data to establish a relationship between the systematic risks and the national debts without manipulating the variables. The study used secondary data extracted from economic indicators and statistical abstracts from the respective ministries, Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), CBK, IMF and the World Bank during the period under study. Data was analyzed using STATA software and presented in figures and tables.
Findings: The ordinary least square regression R2 value of 0.8001 and the adjusted R2 of 0.743 confirm that the model has a strong impact. The findings for correlation analysis reveals significant relationships between public debt levels and systematic risk variables. Inflation risks (r= 12.6151, p= 0.0001), indicating that inflation rates are associated with high public debt levels.
Implications/Originality/Value: Therefore, the study concludes that inflation is critical for promoting the public debt levels in Kenya
Effect of Institutional Quality on Financial Inclusion of SMEs in MENA Countries
No full textPurpose: This study investigates whether institutional quality influences monetary partaking (financial inclusion) among SMEs in Middle East and North African (MENA) countries. It analyses how political stability, government effectiveness, and regulatory quality shape SME access to financial services across a 29-year period (1996–2023).
Design/Methodology/Approach: The study adopts an ex-post facto research design using secondary data from the Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI) and Global Findex database. Financial inclusion indicators include SME access to credit, savings, and digital payments. Institutional quality is measured through political stability, regulatory quality, and government effectiveness. Robust regression analysis was applied to address non-normal data distribution, confirmed by a Shapiro–Wilk test (W = 0.977, p < 0.05), while a Breusch-Pagan test (χ² = 0.01, p = 0.9097) verified homoscedasticity.
Findings: Political stability (β = 0.288, p < 0.001) and regulatory quality (β = 0.584, p < 0.001) significantly enhance SME financial inclusion, while government effectiveness has no significant effect (β = 0.001, p = 0.985). The model accounts for 86.74% of the variation in financial inclusion (R² = 0.8674), highlighting institutional factors as key determinants.
Implications/Originality/Value: The study underscores the importance of improving political stability and regulatory frameworks to expand SME financial inclusion in MENA countries. It contributes original long-term empirical evidence and provides practical insights for policymakers aiming to strengthen institutional environments and reduce financial barriers for SMEs
Fiscal Decentralization and Health Asymmetries in Pakistan
No full textPurpose: This study aims at examining fiscal decentralization and asymmetries in health in Pakistan. It examines the effects of various dimensions of fiscal autonomy on important health indicators across the country.
Methodology: The research employs Non-linear Autoregressive Distributed Lag (NARDL) model to analyze asymmetric effect of fiscal decentralization on health status using time series data with annual time periods.
Findings: The findings of the study reveal that effects of fiscal decentralization on health status in Pakistan are positive and negative. However, the positive effect impacts the health sector more strongly than the negative impacts it has.
Implications: By bringing to light the importance of robust fiscal reforms, important policy insights are made available by research, which includes increasing the financial capacity and enhancing accountability, transparency mechanisms and ensuring equal allocation of resources of local governments. It can contribute to cause efficient and sustainable health outcomes in Pakistan
Influence of Top Management Support Practices on the Adoption of Sustainable Procurement Practices in Kenya’s Water Service Sector in the Western Region
No full textPurpose: To evaluate the influence of top management support practices on the adoption of sustainable procurement practices in Kenya’s water service sector in the Western Region
Design/Methodology/Approach: The descriptive research design was used to collect data on the prevailing conditions of factors and situation. The target population consisted of 72 persons in the Water Service Providers where 53 were management staffs and 19 were the procurement staffs, who were the main contributors to the research. The descriptive statistics occurred because of the means, standard deviations, frequencies as well as percentages but the inferential analysis was based on Pearson correlation and simple linear regression.
Implications/Originality/Value: The proportions of respondents who strongly agreed that top management endorses sustainable procurement successful (57.1% strongly agreed, 28.6% agreed) and reaches out to staff (mean = 4.47) were high, whereas they disagreed with the importance of specific sustainability goals (mean = 2.61). A strong correlation (r = 0.708, p < 0.001) was observed with 50.4 percent explanatory variance (R 2 = 0.504, F (1,68) = 70.183, p < 0.001). The regression equation (Y = 2.140 + 0.372X1) shows that sustainable procurement will improve by 0.372 units of change (increment) with a unit change of top management support
Esoteric Story of the Relationship between Transformational Leadership Style of the Field Managers and Salespersons’ Performance: Evidence from the Pharmaceutical Sector
No full textPurpose: In this unbendable competitive environment, pharmaceutical firms need to use the most appropriate field managers’ leadership style that is best suited for their sales force effectiveness, this study aims to highlight the prominence of the transformational leadership style of field managers and the significance of the salespersons’/medical representatives’ performance in an outbound pharmaceutical selling context and how work meaningfulness and work engagement can affect the performance of salespeople by using the mediating mechanism.
Theoretical Framework: A theoretical model was developed by integrating Self-Concept Theory and Social Learning Theory to test seven hypotheses.
Design/Methodology/Approach: A quantitative and cross-sectional study was conducted. A self-administered survey was used to collect data from 350 salespeople/medical representatives from 20 pharmaceutical firms (national and international). AMOS-22 and SPSS-24 were used to test the seven hypothesized relationships.
Findings: The results supported five hypotheses and demonstrated that the transformational leadership style of field managers positively influences salespersons’ performance.
Implications/Originality/Value: This research added to the advancement of knowledge in leadership and sales management of pharmaceutical firms
Is Creative Performance of Outbound Salespeople Accentuated by Ethical Leadership Style of Field Managers in Pharmaceutical Selling Context?
No full textPurpose: Through a mediation process of engagement and creative self-efficacy, this study investigates the effect of field managers' ethical leadership style and salespersons’ creative performance. The study has also examined the moderating role of openness to experience in the relationship between engagement and creative performance. The unit of analysis for the research is pharmaceutical salespeople employed in national and multinational pharmaceutical firms.
Design/Methodology/Approach: The data were collected through self-administered questionnaires using a stratified random sampling technique. The sample size for the study was 350 from 20 pharmaceutical firms, and variables were measured on a five-point Likert scale. The perceptions of respondents regarding the leadership style of their field managers, as well as their engagement level, creative self-efficacy, openness to experience, and creative performance, contributed to the analysis and the conclusions drawn. Data analysis was conducted by using SPSS 25.0 and AMOS 22.0.
Findings: The findings indicated a strong positive effect of field managers' ethical leadership style and salespeople's creative performance. Salesperson’s work engagement and salesperson’s creative self-efficacy mediate the relationship between the field manager's ethical leadership style and salesperson’s creative performance. Also, openness to experience moderates between work engagement and creative performance.
Implications/Originality/Value: Pharmaceutical firms should consider measures to enhance the creative performance of salespeople by encouraging and stimulating an ethical leadership style among field managers
Moderating Role of Financial Literacy on the Relationship between Financial Technology and SMEs’ Growth in Nigeria
No full textPurpose: This study examines the effects of FinTech adoption and financial literacy on the growth of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Zamfara State, Nigeria. It specifically evaluates the influence of mobile money services, agency banking and POS services, and digital microfinance/P2P lending on SME growth, as well as the moderating role of financial literacy in the relationship between FinTech adoption and SME performance.
Design/Methodology/Approach: A quantitative research design was employed using primary data collected through a structured questionnaire administered to owners and managers of registered SMEs across various sectors in Zamfara State. A sample of 400 respondents was selected through stratified random sampling. The survey instrument captured data on FinTech usage, financial literacy, and SME performance. Descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, and multiple regression analyses were used to assess the relationships among the variables.
Findings: The results indicate that FinTech solutions, including mobile money, agency banking/POS services, and digital microfinance/P2P lending, significantly enhance SME growth in Zamfara State. Financial literacy also demonstrates a strong positive effect on SME performance and serves as an important moderator, strengthening the impact of FinTech adoption on SME growth outcomes.
Implications/Originality/Value: The study highlights the critical role of digital financial services and financial literacy in driving SME growth in an underserved region. It provides empirical evidence relevant to policymakers and financial institutions, recommending the expansion of digital financial access and the integration of financial literacy programmes to promote sustainable SME development in Zamfara State